


Like fireworks (we pull apart the dark)

by mostlikelydefinentlymad



Category: Boy Meets World
Genre: BMW, BMW au, Boy Meets World - Freeform, Friends to Lovers, Friendship/Love, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, I'm Bad At Tagging, Love Confessions, M/M, all the metaphors, he's my smol son who has bad self esteem, i'm not kidding i love metaphors, not GMW compliant, not actually superheroes - superhero metaphors, pining Shawn, shawn hunter has feelings, shawn/cory - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-03
Updated: 2016-02-03
Packaged: 2018-05-18 00:34:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,592
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5891182
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mostlikelydefinentlymad/pseuds/mostlikelydefinentlymad
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Every superhero has their kryptonite - the one thing that can level them in 5 seconds flat and Shawn is closer to being the villain that comes crawling on hands and knees into the middle of the book only to be crushed by beautiful metaphors about undying love but he's no exception to this rule. It's too bad that no one ever pulled him aside as a child and told him that sometimes the best poison tastes the sweetest in the moment before death and that krypronite can take the form of a person.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Like fireworks (we pull apart the dark)

Every superhero has their kryptonite - the one thing that can level them in 5 seconds flat and Shawn is closer to being the villain that comes crawling on hands and knees into the middle of the book only to be crushed by beautiful metaphors about undying love but he's no exception to this rule. It's too bad that no one ever pulled him aside as a child and told him that sometimes the best poison tastes the sweetest in the moment before death and that krypronite can take the form of a person. If they had he would've surrendered himself - hands palms up in a white flag and poison on his lips, embracing a death that couldn't possibly be any worse than wanting and not taking.

It keeps him awake at night - eyes focusing on a textured ceiling; darkness enclosing him like a warm blanket and a bottle of poison marked with the name Cory Matthews.

*****

They're stretched out on their living room floor with sunlight spilling in through the windows, curtains drawn, a pile of wrinkly newspapers on every surface and in his version of their life Shawn plays the part of the villain. Everyone knows that villains eventually come to an untimely death but he figures he died on a playground years ago when a shorter kid in glasses wrapped his arms around him; only this is the kind of death that make ghosts linger with their unanswered questions.

He feels like a ghost sometimes, haunting those he loves and bringing himself excruciating pain in the process. He lingers at Cory's side and wilts only when he's breathing but villains wear masks to hide who they really are and his is firmly in place.

Cory is the underrated hero of the story, the haunted and Shawn wants to ruin him - wants to burn both their masks and see the real person underneath but hes never had another person love him with such undying devotion and the thought of nipping that in the bud is daunting.

So he buries the feelings, buries himself with trembling hands and the dirt rains down like snow until he can no longer see the light of day. It hurts to be buried alive, even more so when you're the one holding the shovel.

He's twenty five when he grows tired of filling the empty spaces with dirt and the silent screams with the voice he'd forgotten he had - the choice.

*****

"Do you still love her?"

Cory turns to him, confusion on his face. "Who?

"Topanga."

Her name is lead on Shawn's lips - a heavy weight dropped in a silent room.

"What kind of question is that?"

Shawn closes his eyes and gathers up every ounce of courage that he can muster. "Just answer the question Cory."

Upon realizing how serious Shawn is about the question, Cory sobers and answers without missing a beat - "I think I always will. She was the perfect girl, y'know?"

Shawn thinks that this must be the gut clenching agony that villains experience upon learning that their beautifully laid out plans are no more.

"What about Angela?"

"What about her?"

"Do you still love her?"

It's an easy question. "Yes."

He doesn't add that one of the reasons she sited for breaking up with him was the fact that she could no longer compete with an opponent who'd had a head start on his heart before the race ever began.

Cory closes his eyes and threads his fingers behind his head to serve as a pillow - "Do you think you could ever love someone else like you loved her?"

It's a shotgun loaded and ready - a question that, if answered in a bold manner, could end him right here. He'd die at his best friends side and it would be poetic - a modern day spin on Romeo and Juliet only Juliet is holding the poison - hand outstretched and waiting for him to accept it.

He carefully peels off the mask he'd created and takes a deep breath.

"In a different way, yes and I already do."

"Good for you, Shawn! You're going to meet the right per-"

Cory pulls himself up to a sitting position - "Wait. You do? Do I know them?"

Shawn blushes and turns with his back to Cory - "Yes. You've known them for more than half of your life."

"TOPANGA? You're...you're in love with her?"

"Close but no."

Cory is standing with hands on his hips and brow creased as he thinks out loud - "ERIC? You sick man you! My own brother!"

"Nope, not on your life. That'd be Jack's job."

"If it's not Topanga or Eric and it's someone I've known half my life...gotta admit I'm drawnin' a blank here Shawny."

Shawn throws an arm over his eyes as he speaks - "Cor do you know what happens when a villain falls in love? It never works out. The other person will always miss the mask and one of them won't survive."

"Okay I get it, you wanna watch a movie about villains, we can do that later but first - who is it?"

Shawn clears his throat and sits up on the floor - "What if _I'm_ a villain?"

Cory waves the comment off - "You could never be a villain, you're just talking nonsense now. TELL ME."

"Does the villain ever get the guy? Er...girl?"

"Depends on the movie. Why all these questions about villains, why won't you answer me?"

Shawn groans - "Cor, the bad guy never gets the girl."

He finds it to be a ridiculous trope; after all most villains were once good people who only wanted to be loved. Or something like that. If they had love in their lives and someone who cared enough to note the warning signs when they happened then they might've had their happy ending. He's not unlike them in that manner only he has people in his life who love him like family but he's still the bad guy at the end of the book.

Cory has a lightbulb moment and points a finger in his direction - "WRONG! I'm sure you remember a little movie called _The Little Mermaid_ , the bad guy gets her in the end and teaches her how to talk."

"No...he wasn't a bad guy and she got her voice back because the sea witch took it and why are we having this conversation again?"

"You started it."

"Ughhhhhh okay lets start from the beginning. I'M the bad guy and _I_ don't get the girl at the end of the story."

Cory sighs and joins him on the floor once more - "You're really missin' Angela huh?"

Poking a hot needle in Shawn's eye would hurt less than this painstakingly slow and misunderstood conversation - it's frustrating.

"She's happy without me. I miss her sometimes but this isn't about her. This is about you and me."

OOPS.

He hadn't intended on the words tumbling out in quick succession rather he'd wanted to slowly work his way up.

"What does this have to do with me?"

Oy.

"I love you Cory but you're a real idiot sometimes," Shawn remarks as he closes the gap between them and realizes that yes. This particular brand of poison is everything he'd ever want in love. It's warm and wet under his lips, it's the kiss of life and death in one go.

Cory gasps when Shawn kisses him and so he takes this opportunity to delve in deep to see if the kryptonite there is as sweet as the traces on his lips and it's better than sweet - it's sharing the same breath and a whole body shiver when Cory's tongue slides along his own and he hasn't pushed him away yet. Hasn't yelled at him or demanded to know what the hell he thinks he's doing. Instead Cory is kissing back, is allowing his hands to roam and touch everything he can reach - one hand in Shawn's hair and the other exploring and eventually remaining on Shawn's thigh; heating his skin through the denim.

It's Shawn who breaks the kiss, who pulls away and does his best not to stare at Cory's kiss slick lips and flushed cheeks because if he does he'll never survive the moment that Cory tells him he thinks they need to spend some time apart and maybe Shawn should find a new apartment.

"So," Cory begins as he attempts to calm his breathing. "Does this mean I'm the villains girl?"

He's not running away yelling, not ranting about how much he loves Topanga and how she's the only person he could ever love that much and no one else could dare compare.

"I don't know. Do'you wanna be?"

Cory blushes and laughs and it's the sight that Shawn wants to see for the rest of his life.

"Do I get a cool mask?"

"No more masks just us," Shawn replies.

"You can call me Mr. Villain!," Cory exclaims with a wide grin and one arm in the air, posed.

"Nuh-uh. 'Cause that would make me Mrs. Villain," Shawn counters.

"Mr. and Mr. Villain, Villains at large!," Cory announces.

"I like the sound of that."

Cory wiggles his eyebrows - "Does this title come with any perks? Eh? If y'know what I mean?"

"What good would it be if there wasn't?," Shawn teased as he hooked an arm around Cory's waist and kissed him until they were both dizzy.

Maybe he could save the world after all or perhaps he could let the world save _him._

Sometimes the right shade of poison is the remedy.

**Author's Note:**

> title is by Sleeping At Last "Embers"


End file.
